Coupling



Feb. 15, 1949. I I s. H. m 2,461,863

COUPLING Filed Dec. 6, 1945 6 5 [3 I2 Flg E 'gmm STIJNLEY HQZEEELPatented Feb. 15, 1949 COUPLING Stanley H. Zeeb, Jackson, Mich.,assignor, by mesne assignments, to Aeroquip Corporation, Jackson, Mich.,a corporation of Michigan Application December 6, 1945, Serial No.633,189

The present invention relates to a coupling and more particularlycouplings of the quick connecting and disconnecting type.

Couplings of the quickconnecting and disconnecting type are usuallycomplicated by somewhat-expensive connecting and locking features.

A conventional and simple form of a locking connection is one where afemale member in the form of a nut is screwed onto a threaded malemember. However, where relatively soft metals, such as aluminum alloys,are employed, it is difflcult to provide satisfactory threads unlesscareful and expensive machining operations are resorted to. According tothe present invention, the difliculty of forming threads is eliminatedby cutting a spiral groove in a male coupling member and anchoring oneend of a spiral wire in a female coupling member, whereby the parts maybe readily screwed together.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present inv'ention to provide acoupling of the character described.

Another object of the invention isto provide in a coupling of thecharacter described, a locking shoulder forplacing the wire in shear toresist separation of the coupling.

These and other objects residing in the combination, arrangement andconstruction of the parts will be apparent from the followingspecification when taken with the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1is a side elevation of the invention, partly in section and coupledtogether,

Fig. 2 is a view of the coupling according to presentinvention,uncoupled and partly in section, and

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the coupling nut partially broken awayto show the spring wire insert.

Referring particularly to the drawing, the reference characters I and 2indicate body portions which are to be coupled together. The bodyportions. I and 2 contain sealing mechanism 3 for the purpose of sealingof! the open ends of the tubes to which the couplings are attached whenthe body portions I and 2 are separated. However, the sealing mechanismis no part of the present invention and is more particularly disclosedin the co-pending application of Mark A. Deming, executed November 21,1945, flied December 6, 1945, serial No. 633,188, now Patent No.2,436,206, for Self-sealing couplings.

Attached to and comprising a part of body portion I is a male orconnecting member 4 in which there are out two spiral grooves 5. Each 7Claims. (Cl. 285-122) 2 a of the spiral grooves terminates at the endthere of away from the outer end of the male connector 4 in acircumferentially extendinggroove 6. The body portion 2 has as a partthereof a loosely mounted rotatable nut I which is restricted againstmovement toward the body portion I by complementary contacting shoulders8 and 9 on the nut I and body portion 2. The coupling nut I is providedwith a pair of internal helical wires I2. I The wires I2 as disclosedparticularly in Fig. 3 are each provided, at the outer end of the nut I,with a radially extending prong I3 extending through an opening It inthe nut I. The prongs I3 provide anchors for the outer ends ofthehelical wires I2 and maintain them against displacement. The remainingportion of each helical wire I2 is loosely disposed within the shell onthe nut 1.

When it is desired to couple the body portions I and 2 together, it ismerely necessary to bring the nut I2 relatively to the male connector 4and screw the nut I2 on the male connector '4. The helical wires I2 matewith the spiral grooves 5 in the male connector 4 in the manner of theusual conventional threads. As the endsof the helical wires I2 away fromthe prongs I4 are not supported, they follow freely along into thegrooves 5. As will be observed from the drawings, the length of eachwire I2 is substantially 360 of arc, and the length of each helicalgroove 8 is substantially only 180 of are. It follows that aftersubstantially 180 of rotation of the nut 1 with respect to maleconnector 4, after the wires I2 have engaged the grooves 5', the leadingparts of the wires I2 will enter part way into the circumferentiallyextending portions 8 of the grooves 5 and catch therein, due to theangular relation of the grooves Ii and 6. In this position, the annularshoulder ill, on the nut I, in alignment with which the prongs I3 arearranged, will lie against the portions of the wires I2 in the grooves6, to provide a shearing resistance to separation of body portions I and2.

When the body portions I and 2 are coupled together, a seal to preventthe escape of fluid from within the body portions I and 2 is provided bythe sealing ring I! carried by the body portion 2, engaging with theannular flange I8 comprising a part of the male connector I'. The

sealing ring I! is of the 0 type, which is preferably, though notnecessarily, of synthetic rubber and is of a desired consistency so asto cause the fluid pressure within the system to increase theeflectiveness of the seal provided by the ring. The

clearance between the surfaces sealed by the ring I? should be aminimum. Y

While there has been shown a rectan lar wire, it is contemplated crosssectional configurations may be implied. Other changes in the specificdetails may be made. Therefore, I do not desire to be limited except bythe scope of the following claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire to secure by LettersPatent and claim is:

1,. A coupling of the character described, comprising two body portions,a male connector on one of said body portions, said male connectorhaving a spiral groove therein terminating at its end away from theouter end of the connector in a circumferentially extending groove, 9.female connector on the other of said body portions, said femaleconnector being in the form of a rotatably mounted nut, a spiral threadsimulating wire disposed in said nut, and means anchoring the leadingend of said wire to said nut, whereby said female connector may bescrewed on said male connector.

2. A coupling of the character described, comprising two bochl portions,a male connector on one of said body portions, said male connectorhaving a spiral groove therein terminating at its end away from theouter end of the connector in a circumferentially extending groove, afemale connector on the other of said body portions,

prising two body portions, a male connector on one cf said bodyportions, said male connector having a spiral groove therein terminatingat its end away from the outer end of the connector in acircumferentially extending groove, 9. female connector on the other ofsaid body portions. and a spiral wire anchored in said female connector,whereby said female connector may be screwed onto said male connector bythreading said wire into said groove.

5. The invention as defined in claim 1, wherein on the nut is a shoulderwhich is disclosed behind the portion of the wire in thecircumferentially extending extension of the groove, whereby saidshoulder bears against the wire to provide a, shearing resistance to theseparation of the body portions.

6. The invention as defined in claim 2, wherein. there is provided anannular shoulder on said' nut adjacent the prong, and aclrcumferentially extending extension of the groove, into which aportion of the wire extends upon coupling of the body portions, wherebythe shoulder is moved behind the portion of the wire in thecircumferentially extending extension of the groove to resist separationof the two body portions. 7

7. The invention as defined in claim 4, having means on the femaleconnector for hearing against a portion of the wire in the groove whenthe body portions are in coupled relation for providin a shearingresistance to separation of the body portions.

- STANLEY H. ZEEB.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the me ofthis patent:

I UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 175,562 Havey Apr. 4, 1876455,633 Messinger July "I, 1891 887,864 Steese May 19, 1908 2,341,670Stinson Feb. 14, 1944

